Upper lower split: a 4-day plan that fits a busy week

The upper/lower split divides training into upper-body days and lower-body days. On four days a week, every muscle is trained twice, sessions stay reasonably short, and there’s plenty of recovery between them. It’s one of the most reliable ways to train once full body starts to feel crowded.

How it works

You alternate two types of day, each with an A and a B version so the exercises vary:

Day	Focus
Upper A	Horizontal press and row first
Lower A	Squat first
Upper B	Vertical press and pull first
Lower B	Hinge first

A common week is Monday Upper A, Tuesday Lower A, Thursday Upper B, Friday Lower B, with Wednesday and the weekend off.

A sample plan

Upper A

1. Barbell bench press: 3–4 × 6–10
2. Barbell row: 3–4 × 6–10
3. Incline dumbbell press: 3 × 8–12
4. Lat pulldown: 3 × 8–12
5. Cable pushdown and dumbbell curl: 2–3 × 10–15 each

Lower A

1. Barbell back squat or hack squat: 3–4 × 6–10
2. Romanian deadlift: 3 × 8–10
3. Leg extension: 2–3 × 10–15
4. Standing calf raise: 3 × 10–15
5. Plank: 2–3 × 30–60 s

Upper B

1. Overhead press: 3–4 × 6–10
2. Pull-up or lat pulldown: 3–4 × 6–10
3. Dumbbell bench press: 3 × 8–12
4. Seated cable row: 3 × 8–12
5. Dumbbell lateral raise and face pull: 2–3 × 12–15 each

Lower B

1. Deadlift or hip thrust: 3 × 5–8
2. Leg press: 3 × 8–12
3. Bulgarian split squat: 2–3 × 8–10 each leg
4. Leg curl: 3 × 10–15
5. Hanging knee raise: 2–3 × 10–15

Each session takes about 50 to 65 minutes with a warm-up.

On 3 days a week

Keep rotating: Upper A, Lower A, Upper B this week; Lower B, Upper A, Lower A next week. Each muscle gets trained about 1.5 times a week. That works, but full body is often the better fit for three days.

On 5 days a week

Run the same rotation five times a week, so the order carries over into the next week. You get a little more practice and volume. Keep an eye on recovery and drop back to four if your lifts stall or you feel run down. Push pull legs is another good fit for five or six days.

Never two of the same in a row

Upper on Monday and Upper again on Tuesday means your shoulders and elbows don’t get a break. If you miss a day, do the missed session next rather than skipping it, and push the rest of the week back.

Progress the same way

Add reps first, then weight, with a rep or two left in the tank: double progression. Take a deload week every six weeks or so.

Let the app plan it

Recomp recommends upper/lower for four training days (you can also pick it yourself), builds A and B days from the equipment your gym has, never schedules the same split on consecutive days, and moves a missed session to your next free day.